A Life-Saving Search & Rescue: A Journey to Mission Success

Part 1 of 4 - The Journey

Team SPOT-R (Seeking People Over Terrain-Remotely) competed in the 2014-2015 eCYBERMISSION competition and received a U.S. Army Educational Outreach Program STEM-In-Action Grant, to further implement their STEM and community-focused project.

During the 2014-2015 National Judging & Educational Event (NJ&EE), SPOT-R’s project was still a prototype, with the hopes of one day revealing a drone device at an unveiling in their Linville, NC community.

SPOT-R’s device is a quad-copter designed to help search and rescue operations in the Appalachian Mountains. Initial testing of the apparatus and program design determined that this innovation could be a very useful asset in locating people in remote areas.

Led by Team Advisor Elizabeth Hardy, we last saw team SPOT-R—Nathaniel Hardy, Suzy Clark, and C.J. Clark— at the “SPOT-R Reveal” unveiling on April 21, 2016, a huge community success involving a SPOT-R meet-and-greet and live drone action. The event was a part of the North Carolina Science Festival .

"It has been a very exciting experience working on SPOT-R,” said student team members. “We have made remarkable developments on all three components of the SPOT-R project."

The eCYBERMISSION STEM-In-Action Grant funds allowed SPOT-R to—SELECT, ORDER, ASSEMBLE—components to create the prototype. As SPOT-R developed their device, they implemented technical changes that would soon demonstrate an even greater potential for mission success.

What's Next

• STAY TUNED for Part 2 of 4 - Discovery!
• Click here for more about eCYBERMISSION's STEM-In-Action Grant and how you can get involved.